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The cultural sector boosts the South West economy by £700million a year and is expected to recover from the Covid pandemic crisis by 2022, a new report says.

The report, titled Contribution of the Arts and Culture Industry to the º£½ÇÊÓƵ Economy, says the cultural sector is now larger than industries such as advertising and market research across the region.

It says the sector adds £700million in GVA (gross value added) to the South West economy, contributing more than the £560million from advertising and market research, and more than double that of travel agencies and tour operators, which pump in £320million.

The sector was even larger than the Cornish and Isles of Scilly accommodation sector, worth £330million to the economy, and food and drink services in Bristol, which contributes £280million, combined.

The report, commissioned by Arts Council England, also reveals the sector has created jobs, supporting the full-time equivalent of 10,730 people.

If supply chain impacts and employee expenditure are included, arts and culture added £1.4billion to the economy and 23,500 jobs in the South West.

The study also shows that the arts and culture supported the wider creative industries, one of the fastest growing areas of the economy, and brings visitors to high streets near cultural attractions. It says that for every £1 the cultural sector produced, it stimulated an additional £1 across the South West region.

The new research comes from the Centre for Economic and Business Research (CEBR) and predicts that the Government’s Culture Recovery Fund will boost the sector’sGVA by £1.4billion and will help it return to its pre-lockdown level by 2022 - a full year earlier than was anticipated without Government intervention. The research shows the sector is set to be worth £15.2billion to the º£½ÇÊÓƵJ economy by 2025.